


Fighting the current

by tragic_unpaired_electron



Category: Persona 4, Persona Series
Genre: Beach Episode, But mostly fluff, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Illustrations, Social Anxiety, not an established relationship but Rise's working on it, with just the two of them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:01:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26309728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tragic_unpaired_electron/pseuds/tragic_unpaired_electron
Summary: Rise has convinced Naoto to go to the beach with her, but Naoto just can't relax. Luckily, Rise's smooth enough to fix it.Illustrations by me
Relationships: Kujikawa Rise/Shirogane Naoto
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	1. Chapter 1

Naoto had been excited for this day while she and Rise were making plans for it, but the closer they got to the beach, the more trepidation she felt. As she rounded the last corner and Shichiri beach came into view, she felt like her heart was trying to climb into her throat.

This was the first time in...years, really, that Naoto would be out in public in a swimsuit. Certainly the first time since she’d hit puberty. She was just...barely...getting used to the stares in public when she walked around town fully clothed without her breasts bound tightly. She wasn’t certain how well she could take a swimsuit.

Rise, whose idea this was in the first place, had spent quite a while with her in Okina City seeking out the most modest suit possible--high-necked, one piece, dark, with nearly knee-length shorts. She’d felt pretty good about it at the time, but as she parked her scooter she realized that she’d probably stick out like a sore thumb next to whatever bright-colored skimpy number Rise would wear. She toyed nervously with the hem of her shirtsleeve, thinking about how deathly pale the skin underneath was from years of eschewing the sun, and the thought of exposing herself so much for the first time tied her stomach in knots.

So stupid, she chastised herself. You’ve taken down murderers and cartels. You’ve fought otherworldly monsters. You can’t be this scared of a few gawkers. Besides, you’re here with--

“Nao-chan!” The bright, sing-song voice from behind startled her out of her reverie. “Sorry I’m late!”

Naoto sighed. They’d known each other less than half a year and yet Rise was already so informal. How was it so easy for her? She turned to look at the other girl, but Rise’s appearance surprised her so much she forgot what she was about to say.

“Something wrong, Nao-chan?” Rise asked as Naoto sputtered.

It wasn’t wrong, exactly. Far from Naoto’s expectations of the glitzy idol in her flashy bikini, Rise looked shockingly...normal. She had a one-piece too, not as covering as Naoto’s but significantly more that what Naoto was used to seeing her in, and in a dark, dusky orange. She also had her long hair tied in a messy bun and didn’t appear to be wearing her usual full face of makeup. They still didn’t match, but Naoto wouldn’t stick out nearly as much next to her as she had feared.

“You just...look different...I figured you’d wear something flashier…” Naoto blustered a little, feeling bad as soon as she said it. But Rise just gave a little giggle and leaned in closer, batting her eyelashes.

“Oh no, did I disappoint?” Her face showed an exaggerated horror but her words dripped with glee. “Did you hope to see me in something...skimpier? Oh! Could it be that the famous detective isn’t as chivalrous as she appears?”

“No, I--what, chivalrous?” Naoto sputtered in panic. She had absolutely no defense against Rise when the other girl was like this.

“I’m just playing with you, silly,” Rise shot her a blinding smile and whatever Naoto had been about to say died in her throat. “Sometimes all that girly stuff can get tiring, even for me, you know? We’re here to have fun, not show off.” She paused, not quite meeting Naoto’s eyes. “Anyway, let’s head out. It’s so hot, I can’t wait to get into the water!” She took Naoto’s hand and led the girl down the concrete steps, picked a place in the sand, and began to set up her towel and umbrella.

Naoto, still in her street clothes, watched her nervously. Rise’s outfit was still confusing her. She couldn’t deny the rush of relief she had felt when she’d seen how plain the girl was dressed, how Rise at least wouldn’t be drawing any more attention to them. Could that...could that be why? Had Rise somehow guessed that it would bother Naoto for them to look too different, and dressed accordingly? Naoto shook her head. How could Rise possibly have known ahead of time when Naoto hadn’t even realized it herself until she was already here? She should just take Rise at her word.

“Hey, space cadet,” came Rise’s voice again. “Are you just gonna stand there?”

Naoto jumped. Rise was already done setting up, waiting for her, and Naoto had just been standing staring at her. Was it Naoto’s imagination, or was Rise blushing slightly?

“Um, right, I should…” Should get ready to go in the water, really, but that was the sticking point, wasn’t it? She made a motion to pull off her shirt but her hands seemed to freeze on the hem. Shichiri beach wasn’t as full today as it usually was--it seemed Rise had accidentally picked an overcast day for their outing--but there were still people milling about on the shore. Nonsensical as it was, Naoto could feel their eyes upon her. They don’t know you, she told herself, they aren’t looking, they don’t care, they don’t care that you’re a girl--

“So you’re probably a pretty weak swimmer, right?”

Naoto looked up with a start as an unexpected jolt of annoyance cut into her fear. Rise was looking at her with an almost pitying gaze. “What did you say?”

“Come on, it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Rise replied. “You said you haven’t been swimming in years, so naturally you’re not very good. You’re probably a little scared of getting in the water, right? We can get you a life jacket if you want.”

The fear that had been occupying Naoto’s mind up until two seconds ago blew away. She angled her eyes down, gritting her teeth.

There was nothing, nothing, NOTHING in the whole world she hated more than being told she couldn’t do something.

“I’m a perfectly capable swimmer!” Her voice, for the first time today, came out sharp and confident. Rise’s eyebrows flew up.

“Oh? Well, if you insist…” she trailed off, a condescending expression on her face. Her obvious disbelief just made Naoto’s blood boil more.

“I’ll prove it to you! Name your test!”

Rise cocked her head. “Well...if you’re any good at all…” she cast her eyes out to the water, before settling on a rock a good distance out. “Then reaching that rock should be no trouble for you!”

Naoto narrowed her eyes. That rock was actually...a sizable distance away, but she’d be damned if she was going to back out. “I’ll race you,” came Rise’s voice. “Try not to fall too far behind.”

Naoto tsked angrily as she practically tore her shirt off. Screw the gawkers. They would see she was a girl, and they would see that that girl was the best goddamn swimmer they’d ever seen. Running towards the water, she heard Rise’s voice beside her yelling “Loser buys dinner tonight!” but she was already in the water, fighting the current.

She knew the second she got in that it was not going to be easy. It really had been a long time since she’d been swimming, and the movements were stiff and unnatural. The current buffeted her small body, pushing her back with all its might, but she dug into herself, finding that little core of strength that had seen her through so many fights. Rise’s coy expression while she’d cavalierly dismissed Naoto’s ability was burning in her mind. It was so familiar, and seeing it on Rise’s face, of all people, filled her with an anger that seemed to power her movements.

I can do it, she thought. I can do anything. I’ll show you.  
Naoto’s hand smacked down on the rock as her head broke the surface. She gasped for air, rubbing salt from her eyes as a savage delight built up in her chest. “I did it! I beat…” she suddenly trailed off. She was reasonably certain Rise had not passed her, so she’d thought the girl was right behind her, but she was alone in the waves. “Rise…?”

Just as quickly as that burning anger had filled her it disappeared. She looked back towards the shore, where the onlookers they had left behind had shrunk to tiny dots. It was much, much further out than she had realized. A cold, uncomfortable thought filled her--Rise was skinny, sure, but that didn’t mean that she was fit, didn’t mean she had the strength or the lung volume or the endurance to swim this far out into the ocean.

Naoto pushed off from the rock with all her might, casting her eyes about the water. She had a sudden, horrible mental image of Rise falling behind, struggling in the water and calling for help as Naoto had mindlessly plowed ahead. So desperate to prove herself she’d let Rise drown…

“Nao-chan, are you done?” Naoto jumped and looked towards the sound. Only a few yards from shore, Rise was floating on her back, head turned towards her. She had a funny little smile on her face, but it didn’t reassure Naoto at all.

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt?” There was no blood in the water, and Rise looked fine, so why was she just laying there?

There was a soft rumble from Rise, and Naoto realized she was laughing. It was very different from the performative, high-pitched giggles she had done earlier. “I knew there was no way I was ever gonna catch up to you, so I just paddled out here to wait for you to come back.”

There was silence for a moment. Rise smiled up at Naoto, who stared back at her, trying to sort out her own emotions. She was angry, to be sure, that Rise had goaded her in the first place, that she had frightened her so much for nothing, but mostly, Naoto was confused.

“Rise,” she began, as the other girl looked at her attentively, “why did you challenge me to a race you knew you wouldn’t win?”

“Well, I had to get you in the water somehow,” Rise’s lips twitched up at the corners at the sight of Naoto’s shock. “The way you were looking, I thought that if I didn’t do something soon, you were gonna get back on your bike and drive home. Sorry...I think I made you more upset than I wanted to, but I figured it was worth it if I could get you to stay.”

Naoto blinked at her in shock. The idea that all of that had been an act put on for...her benefit...surprised her greatly, but maybe it shouldn’t have. Rise always seemed to understand things like that, people’s emotions and how she affected them. It was something Naoto had always been jealous of her for. Once again, she found her mind drifting back to Rise’s plain outfit, to the overcast sky that kept the beach fairly empty, and she realized none of it was accidental.

Her cheeks burned and she looked away. Rise had set this whole thing up, with Naoto’s feelings in mind every step of the way. Why was she...coddling her like this? God, it was embarrassing.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a cold hand on her cheek. Rise had flipped around in the water to face Naoto, drawing closer to the girl and reaching her hand out. She smiled that same dazzling smile and Naoto felt her face get even hotter. “I’ll admit it was a little selfish. I wanted to have this day with you.” She leaned in to Naoto’s ear and whispered “Plus, you’re just so cute when you get all fired up like that.”

Even if Naoto’s brain was still working, which it really wasn’t by that point, she wouldn’t have known what to say at that point. She didn’t get the feeling Rise was lying to her, or playing with her. If this was what Rise really felt, did that mean…?

“Besides…” Rise tilted her head to the side and smiled. “Since I lost the race, it looks like I’ll just have to buy you dinner tonight…”


	2. Bonus illustrations

**Author's Note:**

> This is kind of based on one of the late-night Junes conversations you can overhear between Rise and Naoto, where Naoto talks about how she envies Rise's easy understanding of other people.


End file.
